A storage array is a storage system that contains multiple drives. It has cache memory and functionalities such as RAID (redundant array of independent disks) and virtualization. A storage area network (SAN) is a network that can provide access to consolidated, block level data storage. It can be used to make storage devices, such as storage arrays, accessible to host computers (e.g., server computers) so that the storage devices appear as locally attached devices to the operating systems on the host computers.
Use of the same reference numbers in different figures indicates similar or identical elements.